Decoupling capacitors (DCAPs) are an important component of power distribution networks (PDNs) for very-large-scale-integrated circuit (VLSI) designs. These decoupling capacitors shunt the supply noise caused by active circuit elements through the capacitor, thereby suppressing the supply noise observed by other elements of the circuit that are about to become active.
Several considerations are important to DCAP design, including high area efficiency, robust electrical properties, and properly targeted operational frequency. In a typical VLSI system, the integrated circuit (IC) chip is connected to a voltage regulator through its PDN, and supply noise is suppressed by decoupling capacitors placed throughout the system. These decoupling capacitors can include on-die DCAPs that are integrated on the chip itself and placed near the active circuit elements, package level DCAPS installed on the VLSI's package, and/or board level DCAPs installed on the circuit board on which the VLSI is installed.
The above-described description is merely intended to provide a contextual overview of current techniques and is not intended to be exhaustive.